"Smart" two year old?

My daughter is almost two and a half. We haven't had any 'real' success with potty training yet, but she has a 6 month old little brother.

She can count up to 15 or so unaided(looses interest after 26 or 27 when she's repeating), she'll count up and down 'one, two, three, two, one!) and she can sing the alphabet song alone. She knows over 20 'sounds', like frog, elephant, horse, pig, seat belt, dog, cat, snake, etc.

People are constantly telling me she's 'smart'. I'm worried that these are just compliments instead of her being 'smart'. She's putting sentences together very well, although not perfect (I no like it).

She knows how to play hide and seek, can sing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, knows all the basic colors (red, purple, pink, green, etc) and she is very well mannered (No, thank you; thank you; please, etc) and her biggest word so far is 'congratulations'. She can identify almost every character from her favorite tv shows (Kai Lan, Dora the Explorer, Yo Gabba, Gabba are just a few). She has problems pronouncing the first syllables of some words, particularly words that start with 's' (she skips the s sound) and F (which she replaces with p) For instance it's talt instead of 'salt' and pella instead of 'fella'. She is capable of feeding herself, although it's a rare occasion if we get through dinner with that way. She drinks out of a cup most of the time, except when we're out and about.

I was wondering how she was doing in comparison to other children her age? I don't want to go around thinking I have a really smart kid if she's actually 'average'. I don't know anyone else who has a child her age, the closest one is her cousin who is going to be 2 in November or December. I know she's far ahead of him, particularly with speech.

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Tanya - posted on 10/24/2010

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My daughter Grace is that and than some in her learning,She is even writting her own name. I have been told the same but I think the fact that she goes to a day care where all the kids are a year older than her and that she is the youngest of five. (four teens and preteens) I think this has helped in her being a head of the game. I think girls mature faster at this age than boys. I remember my sons where still not talking sentences at this age. I think putting a label on a kid is wrong. Let them be who they are. If they enjoy learning nurture that, each child develops at their own pace.

You definitely have a clever girl there! Even if she's not ready for MENSA, she's definitely ready to keep learning!

When I was asking my own doctor about my child's behavior that I considered pretty advanced for his age, she told me that kids often have a specific area or two that they are really "smart" in when they are this age (2). That their skills tend to even out by the time they start school.

You're clearly doing a great job with her. Keep up the good work and I'm sure she'll continue to thrive!

It sounds like you spend alot of time teaching your daughter and she is responding by learning what you are teaching. When my son was this age (he is now 17 years old), he was able to do what your daughter is doing and could even add and subtract. He was able to tell time with traditional clock by age 4 years and was working with fractions as well. My daughter is now age 2 1/2 years and has major speech delays, so is unable to do any of what your daughter does because of it. Yet, when we go out, she knows exactly where she is and where we are going. She can communicate complex ideas with sign language and gestures she makes up. I don't know how smart or stupid this makes either of my children or yours, but it reflects what they are exposed to and how they responded. I do know that my son scores very high on standarized achievement tests, but he gets mediocre grades in school. I attribute this to a lack of proper stimulation/motivation in the school setting. My suggestion to you is this: don't worry about how your child measures up to other children. Enjoy your time together and concentrate on giving her the attention she needs to learn all the skills she needs in order to survive and thrive in her world and let the rest just happen.

Hehe my daughter has counted unassisted to 20, she usually gets bored and stops in the mid teens though. She's also jumped in with numbers in the 20s and 30s--I think it's because she's usually around when I work out and she hears me counting reps lol.At her 2nd birthday, she had a very limited vocabulary, though she understood a lot. Since then? It's exploded. She knows about 7 different songs now, including the ABC song. She uses complex sentences a lot and keeps coming out with new words.However, she does NOT want to potty train. She'll do okay for a couple days using the potty more often than not, then suddenly refuse to get on it. "NO, mama. No potty. Bad mommy, I have diaper. Don't wanna." No kidding. And she picks her diaper--cloth or sposie--by her mood. If I try to put the wrong one on her, god help us all. She wants to do all other "big kid" things--including go to school and she will actually pack her little mini backpack we bought her, put books and crayons in it, and go out with her brother and myself to wait for his bus. "Mommy, I go on bus. Mommy, I go school too, now, kay?" I can't get her to say "no, thank you". It's always "no, please," but she has her own code: "Yes please" for a definite yes, just yes--or no, depending on her mood--if she doesn't care or isn't sure what you're asking, and "no please" is basically "oh hell no".I don't know if she's ahead or behind or firmly in the middle, and I like it that way. We do child led learning. If she's interested in something, I will find ways to learn about it and to teach her about it. She and I both have a ball.

First off, I think all our kids are smart! Here's what I have to compare...I have a 2 1/2 year old son who does all these things. And by all means, I think he's smart. He is learning to recognize letters now, as he has an older sister. BUT, my now 5 year olds intelligence level was far beyond that of my son. At 31 months, she learned just about every car on the road, was learning to write, spell and knew all the sounds the letters made. She could also count to 100. Now at 5, we are having her IQ tested as she has been doing addition and subtraction now for a year and she's reading all her books. Oh, at 2 1/2 she was also able to color in the lines and view things in a very abstract manner. She had reasoning and logic skills too.

My point is, all kids are smart. Nurture them and the will bloom. Whatever their intersts are, support them and provide the opportunity for them to a step further. That is what we have done, and now that my daughter is in school, she is far beyond what they are doing in class, but she is also a healthy and HAPPY child!

my daughter is two and a half two (hence the april 2008) group,,and does all those and some. but i dont think there is anything crazy smart about these toddlers, its just they are learning faster than others. im pretty sure that we dont have genius's and if we do, its best not to go around bragging. just keep teaching her, and let the doctors and her future teachers determine if she is a genius. just enjoy her while shes still a baby

my 2 y/o does the same abcs,counts to 20,reconizes some letters,can tell the diffrence between letters and numbers,says 5-6 word sentences,sings a number of songs,knows people by name,character names,movie titles,sleeping in a twin bed since he was one.all kids learn diffrent,and all are smart and special.everyone likes to brag about their kids,and it's ok it just shows how proud u r of them and should b no matter what

Bless her, she's so clever. My sons the same. He counts, recognises things (like a digger in a book he'll say digger etc) can say his full name, knows colours, he can do a bit of sign language, has been toilet trained for 4 months now (no potty training either) and he's very well mannered. The only person i can compare him to is his friend, Francesca, and she's 2 months younger than him. And she's clever as well but in different ways. My sons speach is very clear compared to hers. I just hope his cleverness carrys on throughout his whole life. Sometimes i think how can he possibly be this clever? It's amazing and love every day with him as he comes out without something new every day !!

Brag and brag some more......... our 2 1/2 year old can count to 15, sing her ABC's, name most colors & shapes, tell you where she lives, spell her name, speak clearly, and has been potty trained for over a year. However our 3 year old grandaugher will not tell you her name or count, and still wares pull-ups.We try to help the kids with different learning toys, but all kids learn at different rates. And, YES we do have smart kids.

How interesting that must be to have a son and a grandson so close in age!

I just don't want to think that she's smarter than average and have her not be.. I dont' want to push too hard if she's not as smart as people make her out, but I don't want to neglect her intelligence if she's actually above average. I love every minute of her, she's my little Gem. I could talk about her for hours, and honestly my kids are my life. I was in college the first year after she was born *I had her two weeks before finals* Spent the summer being mommy, and went to school. Other than that I think i've managed to work for about two months *temp agencies* but all of my time has been spent with my kids. I always talk to my daughter like an adult, I don't belittle her or treat her like an idiot. Baby talk is fine with infants to teach them sound combinations, but speaking to them in a normal tone is far better. She also watches preschool TV like sesame street. I'm so proud of her I just want to keep being a good mommy by keeping my expectations within range of her abilities.

Hi Deborah,I am a mother of 3 (two older daughters 21 yrs & 19yrs, a 21/2 yr old son + a 2 yr old grandson) I also worked in childcare prior to having my son. Your post is like reading about my son!He knows all the animals & sounds they make, All colours (except grey), ABC song, most nursery rhymes & sings along to radio songs. His kindy teacher told me that he is the only child in the class that knows all the colours! He also corrects people when they are wrong! eg: My grandson will call me mum (just copying his 2 1/2 yr old uncle!) My son will tell him "No, it's Nan!"Whether they are advanced or not, we need to embrace their desire to learn. This is the time that they learn so fast! As they get older you may find that other children will catch up. Be proud of her accomplishments & accept every compliment. Also, be so proud of yourself, because you have obviously given your daughter your time for her to learn so quickly!!Good luck & enjoy every minute.Denise Lee